Album Notes

ASSORTED PRESS:

In the current slew of artists fed up with a lot of indie's heady experimentation (the ones turning back the dial as far as influences go), no one but Hamilton puts as much innocent glee into sticking to the classic, the simple than he and his all-American Babies. There's an appealing naivete to the referential roughness. And the band is so utterly itself about it. It's great fun, sunny, heal-kick kind of stuff, but Hamilton, a gifted songwriter/harmonizer/young-Brian Wilson-type, is only in his mid-20's, and seems too happy about his music to go crazy about it any time. So, translation: You'll be hearing more from the American Babies in the coming months. And you'll really, really want to like it. Keep your ears and your heart wide open. -- Jon Meyer, WERS New Music Forecast

Tom Hamilton is only in his mid-'20s, but the guitarist/singer commands his nursery of American Babies with all the seasoned know-how of someone twice his age. The band is filled out by some heavy hitting Brooklyn based musicians; guitarist Scott Metzger, bassist Jim Hamilton, vibraphone virtuoso Kevin Kendrick, and the highly praised drummer Joe Russo. Such a lineup could easily create a large, boisterous sound, but the American Babies apply a "less is more" mentality to these rootsy, country-infused tunes. When Hamilton strums his guitar, casually wails into his harmonica, and leads the American Babies in another one of their wistful numbers, he channels a young Gram Parsons (or perhaps a more sober Ryan Adams). And when the American Babies wrap their three-part harmonies around Hamilton's twangy baritone, it's not hard to see this group - and their young leader - enjoying a career as lengthy as those aforementioned luminaries. -- BaebleMusic.com